Dr Tim McFarland
Honorary Research Fellow
TC Beirne School of Law
Researcher biography
Dr Tim McFarland is a Research Fellow at the TC Beirne School of Law, The University of Queensland. His current research focuses on the legal challenges connected with the defence and security applications of science and technology, with a particular focus on the impact of autonomous systems. His broader research interests include the law of armed conflict and international criminal law. He is the author of Autonomous Weapon Systems and the Law of Armed Conflict (Cambridge University Press, 2020). Before joining the University of Queensland, Tim researched the legal, ethical and social implications of military use of autonomous systems as a member of the Values in Defence & Security Technology group within the School of Engineering and Information Technology of the University of New South Wales at the Australian Defence Force Academy. He completed his PhD studies at Melbourne Law School. He also holds degrees in Engineering and Economics, and has worked in the international humanitarian law department of the Australian Red Cross as well as in a variety of information technology roles.
Publications
Book
McFarland, Tim (2020). Autonomous weapon systems and the law of armed conflict: compatibility with international humanitarian law. Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press. doi: 10.1017/9781108584654
Book Chapters
McFarland, Tim and Galliott, Jai (2021). Understanding AI and autonomy: problematizing the meaningful human control argument against killer robots. Lethal autonomous weapons: re-examining the law and ethics of robotic warfare. (pp. 41-56) edited by Jai Galliott, Duncan MacIntosh and Jens David Ohlin. New York, NY, United States: Oxford University Press. doi: 10.1093/oso/9780197546048.003.0004
McFarland, Tim (2021). The concept of autonomy. Autonomous cyber capabilities under international law. (pp. 12-35) edited by Rain Liivoja and Ann Väljataga. Tallinn, Estonia: NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence.
McFarland, Tim, Galliott, Jai and Cappuccio, Massimiliano (2020). The big data paradox and its importance to strategy and military systems development. Big data and democracy. (pp. 182-197) edited by Kevin Macnish and Jai Galliott. Edinburgh, United Kingdom: Edinburgh University Press.
McFarland, Tim and Galliott, Jai (2019). Autonomous systems in a military context (part 1) : A survey of the legal issues. Unmanned Aerial Vehicles. (pp. 412-432) edited by Information Resources Management Association. Hershey, PA, United States: IGI Global. doi: 10.4018/978-1-5225-8365-3.ch018
Galliott, Jai and McFarland, Tim (2019). Autonomous systems in a military context (part 2) : A survey of the ethical issues. Unmanned Aerial Vehicles. (pp. 433-451) edited by Information Resources Management Association. Hershey, PA, United States: IGI Global. doi: 10.4018/978-1-5225-8365-3.ch019
Journal Articles
McFarland, Tim (2023). Autonomous weapon systems and IHL compliance: a constrained legal optimisation problem. Journal of Military Studies, 12 (1), 75-84. doi: 10.2478/jms-2023-0006
Walker-Munro, Brendan and McFarland, Tim (2023). Splintering: A Fractured Internet and What it Means for the Rule of Law. Court of Conscience, 17 (1), 1-21.
McFarland, Tim (2023). Reconciling trust and control in the military use of artificial intelligence. International Journal of Law and Information Technology, 30 (4), 472-483. doi: 10.1093/ijlit/eaad008
McFarland, Tim and Assaad, Zena (2023). Legal reviews of in situ learning in autonomous weapons. Ethics and Information Technology, 25 (1) 9. doi: 10.1007/s10676-023-09688-9
Guo, Sanzhuan and McFarland, Tim (2023). Dual nationality and national belonging: A case study of Chinese diaspora in Indonesia from 1949 to 1960s. Revue Europeenne des Migrations Internationales, 39 (2-3), 155-174. doi: 10.4000/remi.23184
McFarland, Tim (2022). Minimum levels of human intervention in autonomous attacks. Journal of Conflict & Security Law, 27 (3) krac021, 387-409. doi: 10.1093/jcsl/krac021
McFarland, Timothy (2017). Can implants be weapons under the law? Implications for regulation. IEEE Technology and Society Magazine, 36 (1), 62-64. doi: 10.1109/mts.2017.2654291
McFarland, Tim and Galliott, Jai (2016). Autonomous systems in a military context (part 1) : A survey of the legal issues. International Journal of Robotics Applications and Technologies, 4 (2), 34-52. doi: 10.4018/ijrat.2016070103
Galliott, Jai and McFarland, Tim (2016). Autonomous systems in a military context (part 2) : A survey of the ethical issues. International Journal of Robotics Applications and Technologies, 4 (2), 53-68. doi: 10.4018/ijrat.2016070104
McFarland, Tim (2016). Review of: Military Robots: Mapping the Moral Landscape. IEEE Technology and Society Magazine, 35 (2), 23-25. doi: 10.1109/mts.2016.2564504
McFarland, Tim (2015). Factors shaping the legal implications of increasingly autonomous military systems. International Review of the Red Cross, 97 (900), 1313-1339. doi: 10.1017/s1816383116000023
McFarland, Tim and McCormack, Tim (2014). Mind the gap: can developers of autonomous weapon systems be liable for war crimes?. US Naval War College International Law Studies, 90, 361-385.
Conference Papers
McFarland, T. and Hill, S.D. (1995). A comparison of fuzzy and computed-torque control of a robot arm. 8th International Conference on Industrial and Engineering Applications of Artificial Intelligence and Expert Systems (IEA/AIE-95), Melbourne, VIC, Australia, 6-8 June, 1995. Amsterdam, the Netherlands: Gordon and Breach Publishers.
Tim McFarland and Simon D Hill (1995). A comparison of fuzzy and gain-scheduling control of a robot arm. National Conference of the Australian Robot Association, Melbourne, VIC, Australia, 5-7 July 1995.
Newspaper Article
Liivoja, Rain, Massingham, Eve, McFarland, Tim and McKenzie, Simon (2020, 09 09). Are autonomous weapons systems prohibited? GameChanger
Department Technical Report
McFarland, Tim (2020). The concept of autonomy. Law and the Future of War Research Group, School of Law, The University of Queensland.
Working Paper
McFarland, Tim (2018). Defining autonomous weapon systems. PREMT Briefing Paper. 1. Program on the Regulation of Emerging Military Technologies.
Generic Documents
McFarland, Tim (2021). Autonomous weapons and the jus ad bellum: an overview. Law School Policy Review.
McFarland, Tim (2020). Is an autonomous weapon system just a machine?. Cambridge University Press.
McFarland, Tim (2018). Autonomous weapons and human control. International Committee of the Red Cross.